CHAPTER 10
Jimmy ended the call on his cell phone just as he saw Jack saunter into the hay room.
“Well, well, well.” Jack folded his arms and leaned against the doorframe. “Before you go have pie with the governor, big brother, you might want to wipe his daughter’s lipstick off your mouth.”
Jimmy scowled and scrubbed one hand over his lips. A man couldn’t even find privacy in the hay room anymore. But come to think of it, Jack had walked in on some pretty sticky situations a few times in their teen years too.
At least Jimmy was alone for this unwelcome interruption. He thought about how he hadn’t been alone just a minute ago and smiled.
It seemed the doc had been right. His dick wasn’t broken after all. It just needed the right motivation.
Lia sure filled that bill. He resisted the urge to adjust himself in his jeans until he was alone.
Jack shook his head. “Man-oh-man, you got it bad.”
Jimmy didn’t answer. He wiped one last time at his mouth to make sure there was no more lipstick and took a step toward the doorway. “Let’s go get us some pie, little brother.”
He couldn’t wait to be near Lia again, even if they had to pretend in front of the others that they hadn’t spent one hell of a night six months ago getting to know one another in the carnal manner.
“Uh, huh. Pie. Is that what you’re calling it nowadays?” Jack smirked.
That smart-ass remark earned Jack a punch in the arm as Jimmy tried to remove the I-just-made-out-with-your-daughter-in-the-barn smile from his face before he had to sit down with the governor.
The press had taken all their shots and left so Jimmy didn’t worry when he, Jack and Jared, being the three Gordon men, were seated at the same table as Governor Carrington, Lia and—as much as he dreaded it—Senator Dickson, the senator who had been referred to on base not so affectionately as Dickhead ever since he tried to shut them down in the name of budget cuts.
Asshole.
The man proved Jimmy’s low opinion of him was well deserved when he said, “I have to stick to my assertion that if we could cut money from the defense budget, this administration would have the funds to support small farmers like yourselves.”
As Dickhead spouted off about the state budget over pie, Jimmy tried to stay in his happy place so he wouldn’t lose his cool and tell the senator exactly what he thought about him and his theory.
Even with all of his effort to distance himself, Jimmy felt his face getting hot. He glanced over to find Jack clenching a fork in his fist so tightly his knuckles were turning white.
“I have to disagree with you, Senator.” The comment from Lia had Jimmy’s ears perking up as he turned in his chair to hear what she had to say. She laid down her fork and continued, “Besides the importance of the US maintaining a strong military in today’s volatile world, you know as well as I that you can’t simply shuffle money from one budget line directly to that of another. It doesn’t work that way.”
Her speech had Jimmy’s heart swelling with pride. Actually, after seeing her put the senator in his place, other parts of him were starting to swell too. He always had found intelligence in a woman sexy as hell.
The senator blanched at Lia’s remarks, but being a scumbag politician he managed to pull himself together quickly. He pasted a phony smile on his lying face. “Such a charming naiveté. I’m sure once you and my son are married, you’ll become more familiar with the complex inner workings of politics. Though I hope you’ll be too busy giving me grandchildren instead.”
Jimmy was barely aware of Jack choking on his iced tea next to him. He was too busy trying to not lose his own pie all over the table after what the senator had just said.
He looked at Lia, vainly hoping for her to deny what Dickhead had said. How could she have kissed him like that in the hay room and then told him to call her if she was engaged to the senator’s son?
Her face turned bright red as she glanced at him then back to her future father-in-law.
Father-in-law. Jimmy’s brain nearly exploded at that thought.
“Senator, I must remind you—” Lia began, but was cut off by her father the governor.
“Amelia, dear. We’re not here to talk about the defense budget. Mr. Gordon, perhaps we should begin the agenda for our discussions so these very busy farmers can get back to their businesses.”
Enough of this crap. One farmer was leaving now. Jimmy stood.
“I’ll let y’all get to your meeting. Governor. Senator.” He nodded and strode as fast as he could away from the woman he apparently was never destined to have in his life.
He heard footsteps and suddenly Jack was beside him, grabbing his arm as they reached the kitchen door of the house. “Jimmy.”
Jimmy shook off his brother’s hand. “Leave me alone, Jack.”
At the warning in his tone, Jack was smart enough to back off, but Jimmy’s torture was not over yet. He’d barely gotten up the stairs to his room when his cell phone rang.
He looked at the display and recognized Lia’s number. Cussing, he dropped the phone on the bed unanswered and pulled his duffle bag out of the closet.
Shoving clothes in, he made sure to tuck his precious doctor’s note inside too before he zipped up the bag and flung it over his shoulder.
He’d find his mama, say goodbye and then grab one of the trucks. There was no way he could wait around for Jack to drive him back to the base when he left. All Jimmy knew was he couldn’t get away from there—and her—fast enough.
If only he could run away from his feelings as easily.